| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 63.40 |
| Liaison | Olivia Herron |
| Submission Date | March 2, 2016 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Miami University
EN-3: Student Life
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 2.00 |
Susan
Meikle University News writer and editor University Communications |
Does the institution have one or more co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives that fall into the following categories?:
| Yes or No | |
| Active student groups focused on sustainability | Yes |
| Gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, or urban agriculture projects where students are able to gain experience in organic agriculture and sustainable food systems | Yes |
| Student-run enterprises that include sustainability as part of their mission statements or stated purposes | No |
| Sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives through which students can develop socially, environmentally and fiscally responsible investment and financial skills | Yes |
| Conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience | Yes |
| Cultural arts events, installations or performances related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience | Yes |
| Wilderness or outdoors programs that follow Leave No Trace principles | Yes |
| Sustainability-related themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences | Yes |
| Programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills | No |
| Sustainability-focused student employment opportunities offered by the institution | Yes |
| Graduation pledges through which students pledge to consider social and environmental responsibility in future job and other decisions | --- |
| Other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives | Yes |
The name and a brief description of each student group focused on sustainability:
Green Oxford - Miami University’s largest student run environmental group on campus. The group's 30+ active members have been working towards improving Miami’s sustainability since early 2007. Student Governed.
GreenHawks Media - www.greenhawksmedia.net - online student media source for regional sustainability and environmental news and information, with a staff of nearly 10 students from all majors and interests and additional writers from Miami's journalism classes. Student-governed.
Net Impact of Miami University - Engages students through the creation of networks with environmentally and socially responsible businesses, educates the Oxford community about the power of sustainable enterprise, and inspires students to pursue careers within this growing sector. Student-Governed.
Green Team - comprises student employees and volunteers to help promote energy conservation, recycling and composting on campus. Led by graduate student coordinator.
Engineers Without Borders - engineering majors design and implement sustainable engineering projects in developing communities. Since 2010 have worked on a water development project in Ecuador and a project to increase the supply of potable water for a school in Muramba, Rwanda.
The website URL where information about student groups is available:
A brief description of gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and urban agriculture projects where students are able to gain experience in organic agriculture and sustainable food systems:
Miami's newly established (spring 2015) Food Studies Institute will coordinate and develop interdisciplinary curricula centered on food; support interdisciplinary research and grant development focused on food-related issues; and will house an experiential learning center that features a multifunctional organic garden and sustainable composting facility.
A location near campus is dedicated to the experiential facility (garden and composting) and work will begin in spring 2016 on the organic garden.
The Food Studies Institute is not student governed.
The website URL where information about the organic agriculture and/or sustainable food systems projects and initiatives is available:
A brief description of student-run enterprises that include sustainability as part of their mission statements or stated purposes:
The website URL where information about the student-run enterprise(s) is available:
A brief description of the sustainable investment or finance initiatives:
Center for Social Entrepreneurship’s MicroConsignment Initiative, developed in partnership with Miami alumnus Greg Van Kirk. Van Kirk’s organization helps individuals in Base-of-the-Pyramid, developing markets become micro-entrepreneurs who sell essential products and services to others in their community. These products include water purification buckets, eyeglasses, solar lamps and wood-burning stoves. Students have the opportunity to apply entrepreneurial business practices through Social Entrepreneur Corps, where they assist in the MircoConsignment efforts in Guatemala, Ecuador, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic/Haiti. (Not student-governed)
The website URL where information about the sustainable investment or finance initiatives is available:
A brief description of conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience:
The Institute for the Environment and Sustainability holds an annual Professional Symposium on campus. The symposium features presentations that feature alumni of the IES Master of Environmental Science program. They speak about their careers in the environmental science and sustainability fields.
Each session of the symposium features presentations and a panel discussion. Breaks between sessions provide opportunities for students to meet with the professionals. Undergraduates and graduate students learn more about career paths in sustainability from Miami alumni.
The website URL where information about the event(s) is available:
A brief description of cultural arts events, installations or performances related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience:
The annual Oxford Kinetics Festival involves students of many majors; kinetic sculptures are created and built for contests, with a focus on sustainability and repurposing materials.
Annual attendance has grown to about 2,000 visitors.
A public sculpture installation in the middle of campus. "Cornucopia, Dystopia", created by graduate students with funds won in a Sustainability Art Contest (sponsored by the $2,000 winnings from the 2014 Kill the Cup Challenge) is meant to raise questions of sustainability and Nature vs. paved progress. A social media site created to capture student comments and spread awareness.
http://miamioh.edu/news/top-stories/2015/09/cornucopia-public-sculpture.html
The website URL where information about the cultural arts event(s) is available:
A brief description of wilderness or outdoors programs for students that follow Leave No Trace principles:
Miami's Outdoor Pursuit Center offers Miami University students, staff and community members adventure trips, study abroad opportunities and equipment rentals. Miami University has been an affiliate Leave No Trace Organization since around 1999. We have a Leave No Trace master educator on staff to train trainers, who in turn work with students.
Also - The Outdoor Leadership Living Learning Community is a dynamic community sponsored by the Outdoor Pursuit Center for first-year students. Students in this community will learn the four fundamental responsibilities of outdoor leaders – minimize risk, minimize environmental impact, maximize learning, and maximize enjoyment.
http://www.rec.miamioh.edu/outdoorpursuit/llc/index.html
The website URL where information about the wilderness or outdoors program(s) is available:
A brief description of sustainability-related themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences:
Sustainability Scholars: Students engage in a program that is committed to environmental sustainability and prepares them for sustainability-related careers. Scholars experience advantages such as:
Immediate advising from a faculty member in the Institute for the Environment and Sustainability (IES).
Unparalleled access to the types of resources that allow you to address environmental problems and promote a more sustainable society.
Research with leading scholars on cutting-edge projects that prepare you for graduate school or the professional world.
Career mentoring from an alumnus professional who works in your field of interest.
Guaranteed admission to the combined undergraduate-graduate program leading to the professional Master of Environmental Science degree.
Guaranteed placement in the Environmental Awareness Living-Learning Community.
Environmental Awareness Program Living Learning Community: Themed first-year student communities through Residence Life (residence halls). Offers programs and activities that support learning about environmentally sustainable practices, energy use on campus and in the Oxford community, and local/organic foods, among other environmental issues.
The website URL where information about the theme is available:
A brief description of program(s) through which students can learn sustainable life skills:
The website URL where information about the sustainable life skills program(s) is available:
A brief description of sustainability-focused student employment opportunities:
Green Team - student employees can work with the Physical Facilities Department specifically on projects to help promote energy conservation, recycling and composting on campus. Led by graduate student coordinator.
Center for Business Excellence - Student Fellows: students may apply for a paid CBE Fellows position, which includes the CBE Beta Alpha Psi Sustainability Reporting Initiative, in which CBE Student Leaders work with members of the Beta Alpha Psi honorary organization to help Miami University faculty and administrators working to gather data and create the University’s first sustainability reports.
The website URL where information about the student employment opportuntities is available:
A brief description of graduation pledges through which students pledge to consider social and environmental responsibility in future job and other decisions:
The website URL where information about the graduation pledge program is available:
A brief description of other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives:
Miami has quite a few other other programs and initiatives that do not fall into the categories above. Some are:
Miami University’s Institute for the Environment and Sustainability has partnered with Antioch College to develop cooperative education relationships in a project called the Ohio Agrarian Trade Partnership. It facilitates new co-op opportunities for undergraduate students within the sustainable food production industry.
The OAT Partnership promotes education on food-related issues and fosters sustained relationships between students, educators and employers in order to emphasize career opportunities linked to Ohio’s agrarian trade.
The Sustainability Committee includes a member of the student organization Green Oxford and the Associated Student Government's Sustainability chair.
Residence Halls select an Eco Rep to help promote sustainability practices through educational programming, contests and trash audits.
More than 2,000 Miami students work with faculty mentors on independent research each year, supported by Miami's new Office of Research for Undergraduates. Sustainability-related projects range from climate change research in high altitude lakes in the Canadian Rockies to the NSF Long Term Research in Environmental Biology site in Acton Lake locally, to Miami's Ecology Research Center to working with local school children on a sustainable art project for the annual Oxford Kinetics Festival.
Other examples:
A team of Miami engineering students was one of 40 university teams nationwide that were each awarded a $15,000 grant in the U.S. EPA's People, Prosperity and the Planet (P3) competition for their project, "Using Sand and Moringa Oleifera Protein for a Sustainable Water Filter."
Duke Energy/Center for Business Excellence (CBE) Inter-University Case Competition - focuses on interdisciplinary energy solutions
CBE Beta Alpha Psi Sustainability Reporting Initiative - CBE Student Leaders work with members of the Beta Alpha Psi accounting honorary to help gather data for sustainability reporting
The website URL where information about other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.